Toy Fair may 
have been a grand stage to unveil the latest and greatest toys, but it was also the perfect backdrop to honor the best innovations from the previous year.
To kick off Toy Fair, the Toy Industry Association held their annual Toy of The Year Awards Celebration at a gala at Lincoln Center. I may not have attended the event, but I “watched” from a distance on Twitter. Among the best in show included many NKT faves such as LeapFrog, Crayola, Squinkies and Hexbug, with Mattel’s Sing-a-ma-jigs nabbing the Toy of the Year title.
Here’s the list of this year’s TOTY winners:
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that inspires creative play through various forms of activity, the Activity Toy of the Year was presented to Crayola Color Wonder Sound Studio by Crayola, LLC.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for boys of any age, the Boy Toy of the Year was presented to NERF N-Strike Stampede ECS Blaster by Hasbro, Inc.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that helps children develop special skills and knowledge through play, the Educational Toy of the Year was presented to Leapster Explorer™ Learning Experience by LeapFrog.
- Recognizing an outstanding children’s board, card, CD-ROM or electronic game, the Game of the Year was presented to Scrabble Flash by Hasbro, Inc.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for girls of any age, the Girl Toy of the Year was presented to Squinkies Cupcake Surprize! Bake Shop by Blip Toys.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for infants and toddlers up to 36 months, the Infant/Toddler Toy of the Year was presented to My Own Leaptop by LeapFrog.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that combines innovation and play value, the Innovative Toy of the Year was presented to The Sing-a-ma-jigs! by Mattel, Inc.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that is designed for outdoor play, the Outdoor Toy of the Year was presented to NERF Super Soaker Shot Blast by Hasbro, Inc.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for preschool-aged children (ages 3-5) the Preschool Toy of the Year was presented to The Sing-a-ma-jigs! by Mattel, Inc.
- Recognizing a property that has had the greatest success spreading its brand throughout the industry, Property of the Year was presented to Toy Story 3 by Disney Consumer Products.
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that is distributed primarily through specialty toy retailers, the Specialty Toy of the Year was presented to HEXBUG Nano Habitat Set by Innovation First Labs, Inc.
I had a chance to preview and/or review a good number of these toys this year, but I have to admit, I turned my nose up at the big winner. Even though I saw them at various toy previews last year, I resisted the Sing-a-ma-jigs frenzy. Beyond the musical aspect, I didn’t see the play value in these singing plush toys. I thought they looked weird and would surely collect dust in our toy box.
At the Fisher-Price event I attended during Toy Fair, they kindly included a Valentine’s Day Sing-a-ma-jig in our gift bags. My son and nephew (who was visiting) were both drawn to the singing stuffed bears. (it is a bear, right?) J, who is 3, is a huge music fan, 
loves to dance, sing and play music every chance he gets. To my surprise, we found him singing (more like mouthing) and matching his pitch every time he pressed the Sing-a-ma-jig’s belly. My 13 month old nephew followed his cousin’s lead, except giggled and smiled every time he heard the thing “sing.”
I was right in predicting that this toy would find its way to the pile of neglected toys in our house, but I can see why many voted for this seemingly cute, unique and inexpensive plush doll as the toy this year.
Any of you love the Sing-a-ma-jigs and have kids who play with them daily?
